Mahayuti allies Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena faced fresh friction on Tuesday. Union Minister and BJP Member of Parliament (MP) Raksha Khadse alleged that workers of the Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena were intimidating people in the Muktainagar Assembly Constituency in Jalgaon District, news agency PTI reported. Her comments come amid recent tensions in other parts of Maharashtra, including Sindhudurg, where Sena legislator Nilesh Rane earlier blamed state BJP chief Ravindra Chavan for the breakdown of the alliance at the local level.
Khadse told reporters that Sena workers were exerting pressure on residents in Muktainagar.
“Look at the workers of Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena. They are mounting pressure on people. It is my responsibility to raise a voice against it,” she stated.
Khadse, who represents the Raver Constituency in Jalgaon District, further alleged that individuals involved in “shady business” were being promoted by the Shinde faction, PTI reported.
“They are acting like goons, mounting pressure on people. Even my daughter has suffered,” the Minister of State for Sports and Youth Affairs said.
She noted that Muktainagar had traditionally been a BJP stronghold, recalling that her father-in-law Eknath had won the seat several times during his tenure with the party. However, the constituency is now represented by the Shinde camp, with Shiv Sena candidate Chandrakant Patil winning it in the 2024 assembly polls.
Khadse said she had been compelled to put up an independent BJP panel for the upcoming Muktainagar Parishad Elections after her demand for a 50-50 seat-sharing arrangement was turned down, PTI reported.
The latest remarks add to signs of discomfort within the ruling alliance. Last week, Rane, speaking during the campaign of the newly formed Shahar Vikas Aghadi in Sindhudurg, had blamed Chavan for the collapse of the Mahayuti arrangement there.
“A few days ago, I checked what exactly went wrong. It was understood that the reason for the alliance breaking in Sindhudurg was not the senior leadership, but BJP state president Ravindra Chavan. I do not know why he is angry with Sindhudurg,” Rane had said.
He pointed out that seat adjustments were possible in places such as Rajapur, Lanja and Chiplun in Ratnagiri district but similar flexibility was not shown for Sindhudurg. “If they had removed only my photo, it was fine, but removing the photos of (Deputy Chief Minister and Sena head) Eknath Shinde hurt us,” he had claimed.
Rane had also questioned Chavan’s prolonged stay in the district. “The post of state BJP president is a big one, yet he stayed in Sindhudurg for three days. Why he stayed, I will say in the final stage,” he had said.
(With PTI inputs)